Written by Sean Malone | 12 August 2008

While we most certainly are in the midst of the "dog days" of boxing ESPN has been carrying the torch in providing us boxing junkies our fix.  Wednesday night we are treated to a showcase bout that features prospect Joel Julio battling Jose Varela in Hollywood, Florida.  Julio was a can't-miss-prospect before being out boxed by Carlos Quintana back in 06.  At the time the loss - Julio's only blemish - plummeted the Colombian slugger's stock faster than Enron's.  In retrospect perhaps it was a hasty reaction given Quintana's status as a legitimate contender.  In recent outings Julio has looked pretty impressive albeit against limited competition but I would say he has the makings to hold a title in the fairly shallow junior middleweight division.  Varela is an unhearalded Nicaraguan fighter who seems to have lost every time he raised his level of competition (losses to Edison Miranda and Richard Gutierrez prove my point).  Expect Julio to perform impressively Wednesday night as he continues his quest for a title.  Personally I would like to see Julio begin to step his competition up but at 23 any sense of urgency would be premature. 

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